Lessons From a Dysfunctional Family

The title of today's sermon is Lessons from a Dysfunctional Family. Lessons from a Dysfunctional Family, as I thought about this sermon many weeks ago, as I was doing some of my study, actually, for monthly Bible studies that we missed this month. And the story takes place in Genesis 27, most of you know, as it is a vivid portrayal of a very dysfunctional family that exists in the Bible. And it tells a great deal about this family.

And as you can see, they are not from the old TV shows The Waltons. If you remember there, you had John Boy and all the other boys or whatever they were. And everything, no matter what happened during the week, everything turned out great by the end of the show. And they were one happy family. And this isn't a story about the Cleaver family. If you remember Leave It to Beaver, that was actually put out, what, in the early 60s.

As a matter of fact, it was put through and actually used by the United States government as one of the TV shows that they sent to the different parts of the world and tried to get into the Russia at the time. Because they wanted to portray the family unit in such a way that it made all American families look good. Because you have to remember, at this time it was put out, that was during the Cold War.

And it happened to be that you remember, I don't remember his name, but Ward Cleaver, the father, was actually an ordained minister. And he actually had a lot of say-so into the production of the show, so they could show a moral background. And also, not a lot of inclusions of God in the show, but it also made reference, which in Russia at the time wasn't really allowed.

So they had a very hard time with this TV show. But we all know, we've all known families that, let's just say you were glad you weren't born in that family. But there are other people that you've known that said, wow, that's a very comforting family. I remember a young man came home with me. He was about 11 or 12 at the time. And his family was not very stable.

He came home and couldn't believe that my mother had cooked dinner. And we had set time aside to do homework. And then we could actually play. And everything was organized. And mom and dad were there and so forth. I didn't think anything about it. I didn't think it was that great a deal since I lived in it, until I then returned the favor and went and spent the night with him.

I came back. Matter of fact, I hardly slept that night. It was so disturbing. Never went back. But then I began to appreciate my family quite a bit as we realized what I had there. So why would we go through this and look at its functional family?

I'd like you to go with me, if you will, to 2 Timothy. 2 Timothy. 2 Timothy 3, of course. You know the Scripture well. So memory Scriptures. 2 Timothy 3, verse 16. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God. As we know, God breathed and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness at the man of God, may be complete, thoroughly equipped for the good works that he will be doing. This is also brought up in read because I like this translation of it.

In the Good News Bible, I hardly ever use this, but I did find this very interesting. In the Good News translation, it actually says, the whole Bible was given to us by inspiration from God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. Because we can see good examples and we see quite a few bad examples in the pages of the Bible. It straightens us out and helps us to do what is right. It is God's way of making us well-prepared at every point, fully equipped to do good for everyone.

In 1 Timothy, it's interesting here, as Timothy has been instructed here by Paul in 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and also Titus, 1 Timothy 3, verse 1. This is a faithful saying, reading from the New King James Version, If a man desires the position of a bishop or an overseer, an elder, he desires a good work. A bishop must be blameless, the husband of one life, temperate, sober-minded, and good behavior, hospitable, able to teach, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not cuddous, one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence. For if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how can he take care of the church of God? Not a novice being puffed up with pride, lest he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover, he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. This is talking about elders. It talks about leaders in the church.

I don't know that there's any elder or minister I've ever known that lived up to every one of those, but we strive to. It is for instruction for all of us, but interesting here because that's just not written for just the ministry, because as we know what the Bible says to each and every one of us, we are training now to be priests, part of the royal priesthood, chosen generation, kings and priests in the coming kingdom of God. So it's very important that we learn the lesson so that we are not only when people look from the outside, but also from the inside, that we are people of high caliber, that we strive to set a good example in everything that we do. Now, as we go into this chapter 27, as we learn these lessons from a dysfunctional family, I will give you some input. If you want to discuss this or you think I'm taking liberties with the scripture, feel free to come up with me to me afterwards. I'll be happy to talk about some of these things because I have done a lot of historical research on this, and I don't want you to think that, oh, he's just rattling off there. He's just making that up as he goes, but I did study this, and I found it to be very interesting knowing the times that we are talking about, because I think there's lessons for all of us in chapter 27. There's lessons for us about this dysfunctional family that had almost every member of the family so dysfunctional as mind-boggling. Yet, God called them, and God was working in the family as he works with our families. And it's not always going to be perfect, in case you didn't know that yet. Most of you probably do.

But here in this family, you had lying a lot. People just lying. Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie. Okay? You want to talk about tearing down the morals of a family? Have it where everybody's just lying, and you cannot even trust what they say.

Then you had, just as bad that ties into lying, is deception.

Deceitful people. When God calls us to be humble, you know if you're deceitful, it's very hard on a marriage. It's also hard when you're deceitful with your children, and your children are deceitful with you. So that's something else that comes up from the story. And then, if I can put it in the right term that I think the term is used very often today, and I think it's very apropos, so, drama. Drama. Everybody know what that means? Everybody's seen drama in their family? Oh, yes. All of us have drama. We have those that, it's almost like they're on stage when they even talk to you. Having my family, Mary and I have this thing in between us when we'll say something sometime about, she looks at me just like I'm bringing something out, like you're getting into drama. And so, being a good husband, I have to point that out to her too sometimes.

So, we all deal with it, but when it becomes such a central part of the family, then it begins to tear the very fabric of the family down, and it's hard to have everything like it should be. Let's go now. If we can, I'll be reading from the New King James back to Genesis 27, and it is the story of Isaac, his wife, his two sons, and one of his sons, two or three wives that's involved.

Now, I will cover some of these points rather quickly because we're going to cover most of the chapter, as I will tell this more in a story flow, and I will actually give you the added perspective of the research and so forth, so that you can kind of see as we go along here, as we jump right into Genesis 27. Our cast of characters, of course, is Isaac, Rebecca, his wife, Jacob, and Esau, four members of this family.

You'll also see some points that, where did Isaac pick up some of these things? Could it have been from Abraham and Sarah and everything that went down there? Well, let's go there and let's look at these lessons and hopefully we can say, you know, my family's better than that. Or we can say, I'm better than that. I don't have to do this, as the scriptures are given for us to see examples, so that we can be a light not only in the church, but also to those outside the church. And why it's so important, as we'll wrap this up into our destiny. Genesis 27, verse 1, Now, it came to pass when Isaac was old. How old was he? At this time, 137 years old.

His eyes were so dim that he could not see, that he called Esau his older son and said to him, my son. And he answered him and said, here I am. And he said, behold now, I am old. I do not know the day of my death.

Trauma.

Ah, son, don't know the day of my death. I'm lying here. Good guy tomorrow. I had a grandfather who lived to be 94. And ever since he was 70 years old, I would visit him. He was dying the next day. Okay. I did his funeral when he was 94. I knew drama. And that was him. Every one of his kids would come. He had, well, my dad had nine brothers and sisters, and they would all gather. And he loved his birthday. They would come down. Or Father's Day, they would come down. And he just loved. My grandfather loved that. But, you know, he had, I don't know, I won't make another one. Okay. Now, you must remember, I'm not doing this to mock Isaac because he will be in the kingdom of God.

I'm not doing this, but I'm showing those examples because I have just bad examples that probably somebody will be reading, hopefully, hundreds of years from now, and you will too. The ever-continuing book of Acts. But here he is, 137. How old did he live to be? Anybody? 180 years old. 43 more years, he was dying every day. Can you say drama? Now, I'm sure he felt that way because, see, here he was. He, you know, couldn't see. He was blind. Didn't say anything about his hearing, but, you know, that goes too. But one of the first things that older people have always told me is the taste buds go too, and things don't taste, and they have to pour the salt on, pour this on. So here, he is saying here that in verse 3, Now therefore, please take your bow, your quiver, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go into the field and hunt game for me, and make me tasty or savory food such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die. Drama.

He's got 43 more years to live. Okay? Just springing this to the forefront, as we can see. Now, Rebecca was listening when Isaac spoke to Esau, his son, and Esau went to the field to hunt game and to bring it. So Rebecca spoke to Jacob, her son, saying, Indeed, I heard your father speak to Esau, your brother, saying, Bring me game and make savory tasty food for me, that I may eat of it and bless you in the presence of the Lord before my death. Drama. Drama.

Now, we must understand, as the scriptures tell us from earlier, you can turn back to chapters 25 and 26 and find these other details into the story, that Esau really loved, I mean, Isaac loved Esau. He was his favorite! And the main reason he gave was because he fixed food, and he went out and gave game for him. But he was the, it's my boy! That's my boy! Yeah!

And yet you had Rebecca, and it said, and she loved Jacob.

So you really want to stir something up in a family, play the favoritism card. Did you have it?

Were you the favorite? I don't see many favorites raised out there. Yes, I got some in the back. Mike, yeah, no, no. Zillie, yes, yes.

So now you know what these people are like. They were the favorites. I think we all can relate to favorite sons, favorite daughters. Did one favor one in front of the other?

But here, you had a family divided. You had, here was Jacob, and he was, yes! Everything Rebecca could want, stayed right there in the tent, would help her. You know, he was right there. And here you had on the other side, here was Esau. Man's man. Loved to hunt, fish, go kill something.

So he was dead. Well, you can imagine how this was kind of divided up, and how it caused tension between the two sons.

And it could turn into a Cain and Abel type thing. But they were twins! But they didn't look alike. And they didn't act alike. And they were not that much alike. And they were further divided by their family. Now, we must understand and look from the historical point that this was a time that Isaac seemed very old. But how old was Rebecca?

Tells us how old Isaac was. We can put this together. You can go back and calculate him. Done it more than a few times, just to double check myself. Well, we do know from Scripture that Isaac was 40 years old when Rebecca came into his life, and he married her. So he was 40. Old enough to get married, huh?

How old was Rebecca, do you think, at the time? We don't know, it does not say. But you take it at that time of the time and space back in that territory. And in those times, girls got married very young. 15, 16, 20 was considered on up there. So it's very possible that she was 20 to 25 years younger than her husband. So she was not as old.

But you can also see here that God closed up her womb for 20 years. So she didn't have children for 20 years. So Isaac was 60 years old when the twins were born. Everybody get the point now?

How old are these boys right now?

77 years old. You see the movies and it's all portrayed their young guys. Young boys, they're teenagers, they're... No! Go back and do your history. 77 years old when this event takes place. Now you can go up to the previous verse and the last verse in the previous chapter, and you'll find that it tells the story of Esau when he's 40 years old. So everybody just says, oh, they must be 40 at this time. No, go back and do the math and you'll see at this time, 77 years old.

Okay, let's carry on.

In verse 8, Rebecca says, in verse 8, Rebecca says, Now therefore my son obey my voice according to what I command you.

77, okay, still obeying his mother.

Go now to the flock and bring me from there to choice kids of the goats, and I will make savory food from them for your father such as he loves. Then you shall take it to your father that he may eat of it and that he may bless you before his death. So here is the deception.

We're going to deceive him.

Because he's old, he may die.

And Jacob said to Rebecca, his mother, Look! Esau, my brother, is a hairy man, and I am a smooth-skinned man.

You ever seen a guy? I mean, I used to have one work for me. When you take his shirt off, you had to look whether it was human or not. Look like a bear. You've seen people like that. I mean, that's... and so that's kind of how Esau was. Very hairy guy. Okay? And so here, Jacob said, Well, I know the difference between us, and I'm very smooth-skinned. We're not. You know, look.

Look, he says. He's trying to point this out. And why?

Perhaps my father will feel me. And I shall be... I shall... We're getting... Yeah, be back just a little bit there. Perhaps my father will feel me. And I shall seem to be a deceiver to him. And I shall bring a curse on myself and not a blessing.

Wait a minute. Is he saying, you know, Mom, this isn't really right. You know, we shouldn't do this. Huh! He's saying, I don't want to do this because, hey, what if we get caught? And then I'm like, we'll get a curse instead of a blessing. So he's like the old repentance in. He is sorry he got caught, not sorry for what he did. So here we see Jacob's mindset also.

Verse 13, But his mother said to him, Let your curse be on me, my son. Obey only, obey my voice, and go get them for me. Now, you have to remember as you go back one chapter that, um, two chapters that when the boys were in her womb, God actually talked to Rebecca and said that the younger would actually rule over the older one.

So is this Rebecca trying to make sure that this happens? Yes. Is this her rationalizing things? You remember where she, of course, didn't know her mother-in-law, Sarah, or Sarai? Well, you remember Sarah decided she needed to take things in her hands when God wouldn't hurry up and give a child. Remember what happened?

So is this God ordained or is this, like, gonna make it happen? We gotta help God along. How many of you have ever done that? I can raise my hand there. Found out after a little while he didn't need me, as most of you probably found out. Okay? He was gonna do it his way and the right way anyway.

So, verse 14.

And he went and got them and brought them to his mother. And his mother made savory or tasty foods such as his father loved. Then, Rebekah took the, what? Choice clothes. What clothes? He saw his clothes.

Where did they... What do you mean, choice? Well, he had just been there, you remember. He came there. And you also have to remember that this was not a poor family.

You may look, oh, well, you remember he inherited everything that Abraham, other than some money that he gave away. But the scriptures actually tell us that in Genesis 25.5, and Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac. And Abraham was a very rich man.

So, this was not a poor family. They had servants. They had livestock. They had, wow, a lot.

So, here, as typically was done at the time, you had nice clothes. You're nice that you would wear, typically, a cover over you. And so, here, Esau had no idea. His father wanted him to go hunting. But he came over to visit him, and dad said, hey, go give me some meat. Need some beef. Need something today.

So, he would have taken his coat off and left that there that he had just won't.

Because he wouldn't have been, he wasn't living under the same roof as they were, because he was married and had kids and had wives. Another place. So, you know, he's picking this up because, hey, dad just said he was going to bless me. It's about time. So, I take that off. Ready to go. Well, what an opportunity for Rebecca. Well, there's his clothes. There's his cover right there.

So, Rebecca took the choice clothes of her older son Esau, which were with her in the house. And put them on Jacob, her son.

And she put the skins of the kid of the goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck.

Think of the logistics of this. You have the goats that they just killed, two kids.

They had just skinned them.

Can you imagine these bloody skins? You know, here they are, that they're skinned, and then they're putting it on Jacob's arms. And then, you know, it's one thing. Yeah, you get a little blood dripping off and so forth. And because, you know, they just eat the meat and it's like this. But if you've ever had skinned animals, you know that that stays on there for a long time. It's hard for it to dry because it still gets, you know, and it's sticky. You know, this blood and so she's putting it on his neck, you know, and you got to think that it's blood running down the back, you know, his back. Just not, you know, I mean, this is a major plan that, do you think she just came up with that on the fly? Or had she actually been thinking, how can I really, you know, get my number one son, being he's 77 years old, to the forefront?

So let's proceed on.

And she put the skins on the kids on his hands and on the back part of his neck. Then she gave the savory food and the bread, which she had prepared into the hand of her son, Jacob. So he went to his father and said, my father, maybe he had to think it, well, how would Esau say, my father?

And he said, here I am. Who are you? My son and Jacob would have said, I am Esau. I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done just as you told me. Please arise, which means what? He was laying in bed. Okay. Remember, he's going to be dying every day, any day now for the next 43 years. Okay. So he says, arise, sit and eat of my game that your soul may bless me. But Isaac said to his son, how is it that you have found it so quickly, my son? And he said, because the Lord, because the Lord your God brought it to me. Now, it's one thing to lie. It's another thing to deceive, but here to drag God into it, you were talking blasphemy. This is crossing the line, I would say spiritually. Maybe you might also too. Then Isaac said to Jacob, please come near me, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son, Esau or not. What do you think is going through Isaac's mind? He has doubts, doesn't he? He's having doubts because he knows what Jacob is really all about. Right? So Jacob went near to Isaac, his father, and he felt him and said, the voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau, because he's feeling those hairy hands, those hairy arms and so forth.

Then he said, are you really my son Esau?

The doubt. And Jacob said, I am. Just lie right. How many times are we going to see these lies? They just roll off the tongue, don't they?

And he said, bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's game, so that my soul may bless you. So he brought it near him, and he ate, and he brought him wine, and he drank. Then his father Isaac said to him, come near now and kiss me, my son. And when he came near and kissed him, he smelled the smell of his clothing, and he blessed him and said, so here the blessing is being put. Deception accomplished. Blessing is going to be exactly what Rebecca wanted. Now, is it what God planned? Yes. But there's always a saying that it's never right to do wrong. Rather than it's never right to do wrong. Well, I did this because I did this to protect. I did this for...

But we are to be God. And when we circumvent God in a situation, we are actually saying that God's not sovereign, and he's not man enough to do it himself. So I got to help him.

That's scary ground to be walking on, isn't it? So let's go up and read this in verse 27. Surely the smell of my son is like the smell of a field, which the Lord has blessed. Therefore, may God give you of the dew of the heaven and of the fatness of the earth, and plenty of grain and wine. Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be master over your brethren, and let your mother's sons bow down to you. Curse be everyone who curses you, and bless those who bless you. Quite a blessing, as this was going to be prophesied. Verse 30. Then it happened, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing, Jacob and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the president of Isaac, his brother, that Esau, his brother, came in from his hunting. Was that God ordained? Did it just so happen that they didn't cross paths that time? I don't know. I don't know. Or was Jacob kind of like, speed this thing along?

Rebecca, I'm sure, boy, I would like to speed this thing along, because it's working. God can do things so many different ways than we even... As a matter of fact, God answers our prayers in so many different ways. Sometimes the blessings He blesses us with from our... because of our prayers, or He didn't answer the prayer.

Zegarth Brooks said, thank God for unanswered prayers about some girl that he... glad he looked back 20 years later and didn't know later and didn't marry her. Well, God can do a lot of things, and we have to... we have to know and leave it in His hands. He says that even Christ knew that when He said, not my will, but your will be done. Because Christ could have called down the angels and stopped. He said, I could call a legion of angels down here and stop this whole crucifixion thing. But not my will, your will. And sometimes we will... we will... we will encounter that with our prayers. And He may bless us. I've known many times the people that, wow, He just really wanted this job and then they didn't get it. And so, all of a sudden, you know, they're real depressed, and three, four months later this better job comes along. Oh, wow! Glad God didn't bless me with that job. We have to put ourself in His hands. Try to, as we begin to wrap this message up, Barbara Bush, who just died, what, a month or two ago? Can't remember. She made this statement, she was known to be a tough mama. She was, you know, kind of sometimes a real hard one in the family, as they say. And all the kids respected her. But she actually said to us, quote this, to us, family means putting your arms around each other and being there. She was referring to all times, the good times and the bad times, because that's for family. And if you remember George Burns, he died. He was 100 and some years old. If anybody older might remember George Burns, a comedian. Yes, I got one, two, I got, okay, six or eight people. You remember him. He, you know, yes, he actually said, happiness. Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city. But Desmond Tutu, I probably said it better than anyone else, Desmond Tutu. He said, you don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them. Something we need to try to remember, what a gift they are. Let's finish this story now. Verse 30. Then it happened as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau, his brother, came in from his hunting. He also had made savory food and brought it to his father and said to his father, let my father arise. Means he was back in bed again. Arise and eat of his son's game, that your soul may bless me. He knew what it is. It's time for this blessing.

He wasn't going to let younger brother get the best of him again. Remember?

The birthright, the stew, and how they held him out. And as father Isaac said to him, who are you? And he said, I am your son, your firstborn, Isaac, Esau. Then Isaac trembled exceedingly. He knew he'd been fooled. Right? Isaac trembled exceedingly and said, who? Where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him. And indeed, he shall be blessed. Blessing was done. When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, bless me, even me also. Oh, my father! A lot of drama right here.

But he's angry. He's upset. Isaac is. Is it partially due to maybe him even reflecting back and going, should have nipped this in the bud a long time ago? Maybe I should have handled things differently a long time ago. Maybe this favoritism wasn't where it should be.

What is he thinking? Know he's upset that Jacob had fooled him? You're going to tell me that he didn't know about the starving of Esau as he came in hunting and selling his birthright for a bowl of soup? You think they didn't know that? Of course they knew it. But he didn't do anything about it, did he? Talking about dysfunctional family, it's like sometimes it happens when people won't put their foot down. You want to address something because let's just let it go.

Remember David? David kind of with his daughter getting raped by her brother. He just didn't even mad until the other her brother came over and killed his half-brother.

Time you saw David didn't step up to the plate. In families, it requires in a functional family somebody making a decision, somebody putting the foot down, somebody keeping a balance. And that person needs to be looking to the word to get wisdom. That's why we study it for instruction, for reproof. Here you had a man 137 years old maybe looking back for what he didn't do and how he'd come to this time. 35. But he said, your brother came with deceit and he's taken away your blessing. He didn't say, well, wait a minute. It must have been one of my servants that came in and dressed up that way. Isaac knew exactly who it was, didn't he? 36. And he knew why he did it, because that's the way Jacob was.

So if you think sometimes you wonder why God called you as a flawed individual, read the Scriptures. He doesn't call the mighty and the great because he chooses the weak and the base so that he can be glorified with him and us and living like him.

Verse 36, and Esau said, is he not rightly named Jacob supplanter, the deceitful one, heel grabber, liar, thief? He could have gone on and on and he would have been correct.

37 For he has supplanted me two times, he took away my birthright. Now, look, he has taken away my blessing. And he said, Have you not reserved a blessing for me? Then Isaac indeed said to Esau, indeed, I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants with grain and wine, and I have sustained him. What shall I do for you now, my son? And Esau said to his father, Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, oh, my father. And Esau lifted up his voice and he wept. Then Isaac, his father, answered and said to him, Behold, your dwelling shall be in the fatness of the earth and the dew of the heaven from above. By your sword you shall live and you shall serve your brother, and it shall come to pass when you become restless that you shall break his yoke from your neck.

Now, that's interesting. I'd like you to turn back to Scripture first in Hebrews. As we get a little, it's not all Jacob. It was some more collateral damage from the family. If you'll turn back to Hebrews with me just for quickly here. Hebrews, and in the 12th chapter. 12th chapter, and about, let's go to verse 16. And it says, lest there be any fornicator or profane or godless persons like Esau. Esau, this is written thousands of years later.

Who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. For you know that afterward when he wanted to inherit a blessing he was rejected. For he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears. So here you had Esau explaining some of Esau. He didn't repent for giving up the birthright. He didn't turn around and say, wow, I'm starving. Will God? Will God? Will you feed me? He wasn't looking for a relationship with God. You never see it the entire time in the story of Esau. Never! Matter of fact, he actually married what?

Married daughters of half, the Hittites, when his father didn't want him, and he didn't marry one, he married two! So from our reading here in Hebrews, Esau was a godless man.

He didn't need God, didn't want God, but he wanted that blessing, didn't he? And it says, he wet tears, better tears, he was sorry that he didn't get what he wanted even though he didn't really deserve it. So Esau hated Jacob in verse 41 of Genesis 27. So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him. And Esau said in his heart, the days of mourning for my father are at hand, then I will kill my brother, Jacob. And the words of Esau, her older son, were told to Rebekah. Isn't that interesting how that's phrased? He said that to himself. Now did he go home and tell his wives and word got around? Or did he hold it in himself, and did God actually, he had talked once to Rebekah? Did he actually reveal this to Rebekah? And he said, guess what? Something happened big here because the story is written so that you see that she's the one that knew about it. So she said and called Jacob her younger son and said to him, Surely your brother Esau comforts himself concerning you by intending to kill you. Now therefore my son, obey my voice, which he did before, arise, flee to my brother Laban in Haran, and stay with him a few days until your brother's fury turns away.

Until your brother's anger turns away from you and he forgets what you have done to him. Now, who's being deceived now?

Then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereaved also of you in which, in one day? And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth. They were the wives of Esau. So obviously they weren't making life very pleasant around there. Anyway, if Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth, like these who are the daughters of the land, what good will life be to me? Back to drama. He marries one of them. Why do I even want to laugh? Right?

But also, there was something being worked out here, as I mentioned a couple years ago, when we went in the story of Jacob and his wives. Here he is, 77 years old. Mama's cooking food. Mama's taking care of the house. Mama's, all you got to do is just stay around and everything's going to be fine. As we've heard about from a movie made of the same title, we're talking failure to launch. Jacob ain't going anywhere. Jacob's got everything. Mama's washing his clothes. Mama's taking care of this. Mama, Mama, Mama is 77 years old. God says, it's about time you go down the road. You need to leave and cleave. So, this may have been the way they just saw it happen. Matter of fact, did you see on the news this week in New York City? You see that, where the boy was 30 years old, still living at home, been there. He graduated school 28 years. He was living in a room. He had dad go to court to get him kicked out of the house. He wouldn't leave. He couldn't hold a job, wouldn't work, played a video games, did all this kind of stuff, had his room, and the parents said, please get out. They did everything they could to finally they said, we're getting an old eviction order. You remember what he said? He went before the judge.

He needed more time to find a place. They gave him 30 days. He said he didn't have any money. He said he didn't have any money. One of his arguments that his attorney said, which I find, I hate to say what my father would have done to me, he wanted me out. He would have put me out. Okay, but that was another day and another time in another state because he would have gotten a medal in Tennessee for that. But it's interesting because the young man actually said, well, they have trained me to be this way. They took care. They did my lawn. My mother did my laundry. They cooked all this food. They knew they are the ones that made me this way. And so they need to be the ones that have to put up with me.

The world we live in. Wow.

So why do I go through this? Because you can read the story. You've read it. We'll go through it when we have your Bible study and so forth. Great lessons for all of us on a dysfunctional family because they're about a dysfunctional, every one of them. Okay? We learn how not to live sometimes by reading the Bible. As much as sometimes we read how to live because God gives us both. Remember what he said? Three of good and evil. Now, other e's that I want to know and Adam's that I don't do. So now we get both. Let me, if you will, to Romans 8, one of the greatest chapters in the Bible. In my estimation, I go there often. But you see, we have been called to be a part of God's family, have we not? Is that what the Scriptures say? We've been called out of this world to be a part of God's very family. It's a special calling. He said, to which of the angels did he say, sit at mine? Yes. But us, he's called us humans. He's called his greatest creation. He's called us to be a part of God's family. Do you think he wants a dysfunctional family a thousand or million years from now? Probably not. And if somebody's going to cause that, would you really want them there? See, brethren, if we're to be part of God's family, we must act like it. And that's why God gave us, you know, it's so important to him that he even gave his son to come down here and walk and be recorded in at least four books of how to live so he could personify godliness in a human form for us. Romans 8, verse 14 says, you have been called, called be sons of God. And what does he say? Ayers. Ayers. Wow. Ayers. And in verse 17, joint heirs with Christ.

What an incredible blessing, brethren, to be called of God to be a part of his family. And his family, I guarantee you, will not be a dysfunctional family. So let us take this wonderful lesson we have from Genesis 27, and let's hopefully turn it into some good instruction and reproof and correction for our lives so that we can, not only in the kingdom to come, but in this kingdom now. It's time now. Not God's kingdom, but this kingdom of this earth now. Be a functional family, and be that walking, talking example that God called us to be.